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Best ACT And SAT Prep In Orange County

August 16, 2013 6:00 AM

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We’re familiar with the big name prep companies like Sylvan, Kaplan and Princeton Review, but what about the local non-franchised tutoring companies that can give you individualized and personalized support to help you pass that all-important exam? Students and parents alike give rave reviews to tons of local, private tutoring companies that offer real results to students – like acceptance into top universities and increases in test scores of 200 points or more. Read on for some great recommendations to get your student ready for the ACT or SAT.

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Academic Achievers

Named “Best Test Prep Tutors in Los Angeles 2013” by CBS Local, Academic Achievers knows the secrets to scoring high and getting ahead. Sending students on their way with an average increase of 25 percent on SAT scores, Academic Achievers founder Janis W. Adams is a mother of three high-achieving children who attended top-rated universities including UCLA, Harvard University, Cal Berkeley and USD School of Law. Sonia from Los Angeles raves, “I have worked with several tutoring companies, including a very well-known SAT company. However, nothing has compared to my experience working with Janis at Academic Achievers. She is very selective in who she hires since she expects high results. She is very professional, fair and has a knack for setting students up with the right tutor.” Offering private, in-home tutoring, tutors keep parents updated by monitoring results through weekly progress reports, updates, discussions and a diagnostic report. By assessing each individual’s strengths and weaknesses and customizing a tutoring program to fit each students’ needs, there is no other option for your child but to score higher and get ahead. Monica from Santa Monica writes, “My son had already completed a group setting SAT prep class with marginal results. The one-on-one he got from Academic Achievers with the attention to my son’s strengths and weaknesses enabled his test scores to go up by 200 points.”

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Infinity Test Prep & Consulting

Founded in 2009 by a Harvard grad with a degree in Biology, Infinity Test Prep offers students the tools and knowledge that will take them to their dream college… and beyond! Thai Tai, CEO and co-founder, is not only an SAT/AP Instructor, but a college admissions expert who participated in the Quest Scholars Program at Stanford University where he tutored and counseled students on how to get accepted to their dream school. Realizing he had a gift for helping students gain entrance into prestigious universities, Tai created an affordable and exceptional program where he personalizes curriculum for each student, addressing each individual’s gaps and weaknesses. Focusing on positive thinking, Infinity’s goal is to help each student reach their infinite potential. Brian D. from Los Angeles says “Geniuses. That’s how you’re going to describe Michael and Tai at Infinity Test Prep. Skip Princeton, Kaplan and all those other mainstream prep courses. This was the best decision I could have ever made for my college education, by far!”

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My Private Professor

With tutors trained to customize a strategy and lesson plan for each student, My Private Professor has been helping students increase their SAT scores for the past five years. Founder and UCLA graduate Sona Shah understands the increased competition for entry to top universities and the need for affordable and individualized instruction for those students. Also realizing that a good tutor isn’t just someone who’s smart, the tutors at MPP also have extensive backgrounds in tutoring or teaching experience. Corey from Fullerton writes, “I’ve only had a few sessions so far but I am already seeing a dramatic improvement with my practice test scores.” Having practiced civil litigation for years, Sona also realizes the importance of giving back and empowers disadvantaged students by working with non-profit organizations to offer free tutoring to those who need it.

Powerful Prep

With an average SAT gain of 30 points per session, Powerful Prep is proud of its results and not afraid to publish them on the website. With a basic concept that students can’t focus more than 90 minutes straight and too much time is wasted in typical test-prep programs, Powerful Prep launched a program in 2009 to pave a better path through the pre-college process. By using more than 15 different prep books and remaining flexible to cater to individual students and their needs, Powerful Prep is constantly adopting new strategies to apply to each student while spending a very focused hour and a half, the learning limit. Jeff P. can attest to the results, “When Matt started tutoring our daughter, her score was in the high 1700s, and after weekly sessions with Matt, she just got over a 2100 – a huge improvement and directly attributable to Matt’s excellent and personalized tutoring sessions.”

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Strive to Learn

Strive to Learn was just recently established this year and has already gained fans by helping students achieve their best. Luc Cohen-Wanis gives his testimonial, “I was really stressing out about the SAT and ACT before I started meeting with Josefine. She really helped me improve my SAT and ACT scores… without Josefine, I couldn’t have achieved being in the top 97 percent of the nation on the ACT, and scoring 1880 on the SAT!” Founder Josefine Borrmann is not only trained in SAT, ACT and TOEFL, but is trilingual in English, Spanish and German. Students can choose to prepare through group classes (maximum five students per class) or individualized study, or the recommended approach using a combination of both.